RE: Taiwan as Practice, Method, and TheoryMay 25 – May 27, 2017Stanford UniversityAbstract submission due: December 31, 2016Notification of acceptance: February 15, 2017Travel grant application due: March 15Notification of travel grant result: March 30Early bird registration due: April 15, 2017Regular registration due: May 1, 2017Full paper due: May 1, 2017Call For Paper Website: http://www.na-tsa.org/2017cfpSubmission Rules: http://www.na-tsa.org/new/2017/submission-rulesThe NATSA 2017 conference, titled “RE: Taiwan as Practice, Method, and Theory”endeavors to critically retrace the epistemological position and geopolitical contourof Taiwan studies by highlighting the multiply-intersected field in terms of practice,method, and theory. As seen in the header line of most email replies, the prefix “RE:”—regarding the matter of—can mean the recognition of the status quo, a response to a previousmessage, or simply a repeated speech-act to carry on a conversation. Evoking theimage of a communication feedback loop between self and others, the prefix points to aseries of fundamental questions confronted by Taiwan studies in North America today:Who are talking to whom regarding what? Who or what are included in, or excluded from,our conversations and agenda-setting? How do “we”—observers, researchers, or actiontakers with regard to both Taiwan and North America—articulate our own situated experiencesand identify our own intersected positionality in relation to what we do?To capture a more self-reflexive position of thinking and doing Taiwan studies inand through North America, the conference invites papers that critically revisit and- 2 -reimagine Taiwan as (I) a practical case for comparison, contrast, or as an exception; (II)a methodological critique of knowledge production; (III) a contact zone where diverseattempts of theorizing and agenda-setting clash or converge. The submissions can beabout, but not limited to, the followings:RE: Taiwan as PracticeFifty years after Taiwan’s first sociologist proposed to see Taiwan as a “laboratory”where experiments on “Chinese” culture and society can be practiced (Chen, 1966),two lines of case-oriented thinking have characterized how we study the island thus far.On the one hand, Taiwan is a case upon which generalizable knowledge can be built,with everyday reality being turned into “cases” defined by numbers, charts, graphs, andnarratives. On the other hand, the framing of a case is itself a practice deeply informed bythe institutional infrastructures where the researcher is situated. Therefore, some researchemphasizes on the subjective perception and embodied practices that can “make a case”for a potential deviation from norms, models, and systems. Between these two lines ofthinking, we encourage participants to reflect upon Taiwan either as “a practical case” inpursuit of generalizable data, or a “case in practice” characterized by constant bordercrossingand paradigm-making.RE: Taiwan as MethodThe postcolonial Taiwan has emerged as a de facto nation-state struggling to gainglobal visibility among hegemonic empires. Globalization and the rise of China have alsoexposed Taiwan to the division of labor in the neoliberal world-system. Against thisbackdrop, can Taiwan itself be seen as a critical method to debunk the epistemologicalunderpinnings of area studies by investigating the shifting landscapes of sovereignty andgovernmentality, nation and identity, race and ethnicity, or gender and sexuality, all ofwhich are integral to the making of the postcolonial/neoliberal state? We invite submissionsthat can envision Taiwan not only as a comparative case study but a decolonialproject to examine the processes and consequences of imperialism, colonialism, andneoliberal globalization.RE: Taiwan as TheoryThis conference recognizes the intersected genealogies of the theorizing attemptsof humanities and social sciences done by Taiwan studies communities in Taiwan, NorthAmerica, and other parts of the world. Shifting our focus from Taiwan as the passive objectfor theorization to an active agent that can negotiate and produce theories of its own,we encourage submissions that highlight the flashpoints of theoretical debates within adiscipline or among disciplines in Taiwan studies. We especially welcome pieces that cancontrast and compare the diverse trajectories of theorization projects proposed by differentacademic communities.Capitalizing on the innovative culture and progressive atmosphere that StanfordUniversity and San Francisco Bay Area are renown for, the NATSA 2017 conference endeavorsto provide a platform for discussions, debates, and dialogues with a future projectionof the direction Taiwan studies should take through a critical review of the fundamentals.- 3 -CONTACT INFORMATIONSpencer Chen, NATSA 2017 Co-Program Director, scchen0918@ucla.eduLawrence Yang, NATSA 2017 Co-Program Director, knulpyang@berkeley.eduSandy Tseng, NATSA Secretary, secretary@na-tsa.orgABSTRACT PROPOSAL SUBMISSION RULESIndividual abstracts, panel proposals, and poster presentation applications MUST besubmitted at http://www.na-tsa.org/new/2017/main-theme*DEADLINE: December 31, 2016The NATSA aims to promote Taiwan studies in North America and in English publications.All abstracts and papers must be written and presented in ENGLISH ONLY.A) Individual Abstract SubmissionEach submission MUST include (a) an abstract and (b) a personal bio (please see belowfor more details). We encourage your abstract to include elements expected within yourown discipline that are jargon-free. Your abstract should be informative to both scholarsworking within the specialized areas of your work, and as much as possible, to a widerreadership.Following the guidelines below will aid our reviewers in more precisely evaluatingwhether your abstract, as representative of your proposed conference paper, will be accepted.A well-structured abstract will facilitate their reviewing and improve your chancesof being accepted.Submissions missing any section(s) will not be considered by the organizing committee.• SECTION A: Abstract (up to 300 words) with your paper titlePlease note that the scope should be that of a journal-length paper NOT that of a booklengthproject or an entire dissertation. The abstract is encouraged to address the followingpoints:1) Main argument(s) in relation to the conference theme;2) Summary of paper objectives and theoretical framework;3) Explicitly address the methodologies and/or sources upon which this paper’s argumentswill be;4) Describe the paper’s intellectual contribution to your academic discipline(s) and, ifpossible, broader social and political impacts;- 4 -5) Below the abstract, please list 3 to 5 keywords for your paper and 2 to 3 disciplines towhich your paper is most closely related (this will be used to help us select reviewersfor your abstract).• SECTION B: Presenter’s BioPlease describe your professional/social experience in a way that tells us something aboutyourself, your interest in Taiwan studies, and your engagement in the research for thispresentation (about 100 words). This section will not be sent to abstract reviewers (as it isa blind review process). Instead, the bio will be included in the conference manual if yourpaper or poster is accepted. Please refer to the guidelines of bios in your discipline forfurther details.B) Panel ProposalWe encourage panel organizers to include at least one relatively junior scholar (eithergraduate student or recent graduate) in their panels. All submissions must include the following:1) A panel title and individual paper titles to be included in the panel;2) A 600-word statement of purpose for the entire panel identifying the central issue(s)/theme(s), the relevance of each paper to the theme/issue, and to what extent thispanel is relevant to the concept of motions and Taiwan Studies ;3) 3 to 5 keywords for your panel and 2 to 3 disciplines to which your panel is mostclosely related (this will be used to help us select reviewers for your panel);4) A full list of participants, including title, institutional affiliation, and contact information.Please specify which presenter will be the panel organizer. We recommendthat the optimal number of paper presenters in a panel should be 3-4.Should you desire, we will assign at least one discussant to each panel after it is accepted.C) Poster Presentation and CompetitionWe also encourage undergraduate and graduate students, who have not yet begun theirmain research, to submit proposals for our poster session. While poster session participantswill generally be ineligible for the NATSA travel grants, we will present a $300award to the best student poster at the conference’s closing session. The judges of thiscompetition will be comprised of a few of our invited scholars. The basic size of postershould be 24" x 36" with academic standard.Each submission must include an abstract. Please follow the guidelines below in composingyour abstract. The title of your poster does not count towards the 150 word limit. Theabstract should address the following points:- 5 -1) Poster title;2) Summary of poster objectives and key research question(s);3) Your engagement in the research;4) Explicitly address the methodologies, sampling methods (if possible), and/or sourcesupon which your arguments will be;5) Describe the poster’s intellectual contribution to your academic discipline(s) and, ifpossible, its potential broader social and political impacts;6) Below the abstract, please list 3 to 5 keywords for your poster and 2 to 3 disciplines towhich your presentation is most closely related (this will be used to help us arrangeposters if selected).CONFERENCE UPDATES AND NEW PANEL MAKER WEBPAGEPlease check our website and Facebook fan-page frequently for updated information:Website: http://www.na-tsa.org/new/2016/main-themeFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/North-America-Taiwan-Studies-Association-NATSA/128166173923634?fref=ts